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World Cup fever grips Amman
![[Mohammad Ghazal/Al-Shorfa] Flags of competing World Cup teams fill Amman streets.](/cocoon/meii/images/2010/06/28/100628-feature-2-photoAP.jpg) [Mohammad Ghazal/Al-Shorfa] Flags of competing World Cup teams fill Amman streets. |
World Cup fever is spreading in Amman, where nights of matches and debates about the top teams offer a welcome distraction from the country's economic woes.
Each evening football fans, regardless of age, gender or occupation, pack cafes and restaurants to follow the international tournament.
Because the Jordanian national team has never qualified for the World Cup, many Jordanians are lifelong fans of national teams from countries they have never visited and have little connection to other than football. Whether they follow a specific player, remember a match they watched as a child, or enjoy a specific team's style of play, most fans forged allegiances early.
During the second round of the competition, loyalties have become even more fractured following the ouster of Algeria, the only Arab team to qualify for the cup.
"With no Arab team in the World Cup, I will now root for African teams," said Raed Ibrahim, a dairy shop clerk.
Ibrahim Muhanned, a 43-year-old civil servant, said he has been at a loss after Italy, his favourite team, was knocked out during the first round. He is prepared to shift his loyalties for the remainder of the tournament.
"I loved the Italian team since I was a young boy. Now I think I will support Brazil because I like the way they play," he said.
For Rujdi Salam, a waiter at a downtown Amman café, the tournament is not the same without his beloved Egyptian national team which failed to qualify. He follows the matches "which have the most tension."
"The second round is when it gets interesting, and I look forward to watching the European teams face off," he said
In addition to providing Jordanians a chance to socialise, the matches mean big business for cafe and restaurant owners, who say they suffered from a decline in customers over the last year because of economic conditions.
Mohammed Abdulrahman, a restaurant owner, said the matches have been "a blessing" to his business in a trendy west Amman neighbourhood.
"Hardly anyone is eating out or going to cafes anymore, but since it is cheaper to come to a café and watch the match than pay for satellite TV, people are coming," he said, indicating that no matter which match is being aired, his café is "packed" from 5:00 pm until past midnight.
Mohammad Yehya, a 50-year-old vendor, said the matches saved his garment store from going out of business. Located across the street from a string of outdoor argileh cafes in the city’s historic Jabal Amman district, he began printing and selling team jerseys including Italy, Germany, France and Brazil. The jerseys, priced at $15 a piece, have been "selling like hot cakes."
"In the first round, most people bought Italy and Germany jerseys and t-shirts. Now everyone wants to wear a Brazil or an Argentina jersey. I pray to God that the World Cup goes on for months," Yehya said.
For others, the World Cup means less work and more early departures from the office.
"Although my work finishes at 6:00 pm every day, I make excuses to leave earlier to watch the matches," said Mohamamd al-Sheikh, a sales agent at a construction materials company told Al-Shorfa.
"I take a leave when there is an important game being aired. The World Cup does not happen everyday, so you make some sacrifices to watch it," he said.
Reader Comments
Honestly, the World Cup comes every four years, and the soccer fans and lovers look forward to it as eagerly as they wait for the Eids or anniversaries; as the feasts for Muslims and Easter for Christians. It is an event that all the world waits for, and I think that more than 70% of the world’s populations look forward to this event, to enjoy the world soccer games and to see the world giants in soccer. Such an event is considered a great opportunity for investments and improving the economic situations in most of the world’s countries.
Peace and mercy of Allah be upon you. In fact, we, in the third world, suffer a lot from our wives because we are watching football. It is a big problem as, unlike European developed countries, we find the girls and wives watch and engage in sports of all kinds.
There is a mistake in the title… World Cup, not Work Cup.
The interest of the Arab sports fans in the World Cup is normal, although the Arab national teams rarely participate in this tournament. When they participate, generally they do not excel. Often, they are eliminated from the first round of the championship. Despite the absence of the Arab teams, we notice the Arabs’ great interest in this wonderful tournament. I think that this is due to several reasons. First, Arab sports fans are fond of soccer. It is the favorite sport in the Arab countries. Second, the Arabs find it hard to enjoy Arab soccer, because most of the Arab teams are weak and give a traditional game, which doesn’t attract fans and spectators. Therefore, Arabs turn to the World Cup to enjoy the distinctive soccer creativity shown by the competing teams, which are considered among the best teams in the world. As we advance in the rounds, the matches become more interesting. From the first round on, the matches offer wonderful shows which extremely delight the Arab fans. Thus, Arab fans find in the World Cup a refuge to forget about the substandard performance of the Arab teams. Arab fans really enjoy the beauty and the magnificence of soccer. The Arab fans follow these matches despite all the obstacles, such as the encrypting of the TV channels which broadcast the tournament. Arab fans turn to cafés to enjoy those wonderful soccer shows on big screens. We also notice that the Arab sports channels contribute to increasing the Arabs’ interest in the World Cup by broadcasting some highlights of the matches and their analysis. In addition, there is another important reason: this championship is held every four years, which makes it distinguished from the remaining yearly tournaments. The Arab fans wait for the World Cup impatiently in order to enjoy it.
I have been following the World Cup since my childhood. I know quite well the important reason why Arabs are interested in this tournament. It is because they lack such a successful championship. It is true that Arab countries hold some tournaments, but they do not reach the same level of performance, interest and attraction. That’s why this tournament attracts all the Arab and foreign sports fans. If the Arab countries had such a tournament, things would change significantly. Moreover, preventing Arabs from hosting this tournament made them eager to follow it by whatever means possible. All the Arab fans hope that Qatar will host this important tournament in two thousand and twenty-two. This is another proof of the great Arab interest in this tournament and their quest for hosting it. In addition, all the Arab countries support Qatar to successfully host this tournament.
This year is full of surprises and is different from all the previous years. This gives more excitement to the matches. For example, when we watched the matches, we used to expect the winner and our expectations never failed, but this year the situation is totally different, and this is because of the progress that soccer has made all over the world, not only in terms of the teams, but also the planning and training.
The World Cup has a special charm among the young people of the Arab world and the whole world. It influences their lives from different aspects; you might find one of them very sad over the loss of his team, or because of the defeat of the team he encourages and supports, or over a player he loves who has been injured in the game. On the other hand, you might find him very happy and proud of the performance or his favorite team or player, who scored many goals in the match. However, these matches might prevent those young men from accomplishing their work, especially if it is a highly tense game between two strong teams with a history of great reputation in soccer fields.
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